By Lee Ha-na
In megacities like New York, a multitude of immigrant entrepreneurs struggle with English, yet have achieved tremendous success with the development of communication and transportation technologies.
The New York Times and the International Herald Tribune have reported that immigrants such as native Korean, Kim Ki-chol, 59, have overcome these language barriers and become extremely prosperous.
Kim came to the U.S. and opened a clothing store in Brooklyn, hoping to achieve the “American dream,” which he ultimately did.
He arrived 30 years ago, barely speaking any English. His initial customers were mostly African-Americans and because there really was no need for conversation, Kim communicated via body gestures.
A leader of the Korean community, Kim says he not only strives for personal entrepreneurial growth, but to focus on positively influencing other Korean immigrants.
He stated that the success of his life is not his fortune, but the fact that he has helped improve the lives of Koreans living in the U.S.
Like Kim, other successful immigrant entrepreneurs have shared their stories with the IHT, saying that setting their businesses in large cities with huge immigrant populations have benefitted them greatly in that they were able to avoid the need to speak English.
Particularly in New York, Korean, Chinese, and Hispanic immigrant businessmen have found success due to huge immigrant communities. After gaining recognition within their communities, they took advantage of the available communication, commerce, and transportation resources around them to expand their businesses.
Felix Sanchez, 66, is a Mexican immigrant who used to sell tortillas in the street. After taking out $12,000 in savings, he bought a tortilla press and from there, he turned his business into a $19 million food empire known today as Puebla Foods. His factories then popped up in cities like Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and Miami and have even stretched back to his native Mexico.
And when English is necessary, bilingual employees come into play. Sanchez has said he had to rely much on his bilingual staff.
Zhang Yulong, 39, is a Chinese immigrant who owns a cellphone accessory business with annual revenue of $30 million and has 45 employees.
Zhang said that his weak English skills have not been an impediment to his success. Instead, he says that fatigue has been the only hindrance.
About 4.5 million American adult income earners in 2010 spoke English “not well” or “not at all,” according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Of them, 35,500 earned more than $200,000 yearly.
Nancy Foner, a professor at the City University of New York, agrees that technology has had paramount impact on these immigrant entrepreneurs with a poor command of English and that just a hundred years ago, it would have been much more difficult to run a successful business abroad.